Confirmed with Link: Leafs sign D Oliver Ekman-Larsson (4 years, $3.5M AAV)

[jfc64]

STAN. LEY. CUP. RING.

Also, only Tavares has earned more money.

 

[jfc64]

* would've

"Would of" screams poor rural area, sadness, kindness, strive and no reward. (Think Calgary Flames this coming season). UN-CY-JETI. Halfway to speech impediment. Who would of thought? Keep it!

Their is no "i" in there either. Niether hear or dare. Therein. In the rain.

 

[kevsh]

4 years @ $3.5M for a 3rd pairing D is a tough sell.

This is going to be potentially very bad as early as year one. Best case, he gives PP1 a bit of a boost and brings some experience but that term/AAV is more of a gamble than I'd be comfortable with as a GM.

 

[Puckstuff]

4 years @ $3.5M for a 3rd pairing D is a tough sell.

This is going to be potentially very bad as early as year one. Best case, he gives PP1 a bit of a boost and brings some experience but that term/AAV is more of a gamble than I'd be comfortable with as a GM.

There's risk for sure but OEL will likely get sheltered minutes with Liljegren. McCabe and Tanev will be the shutdown defenders on pair 1 and 2. Our D is really built around Rielly, McCabe, Tanev. I view OEL-Liljegren as the 3rd pair.

 

[Tak7]

considering our powerplay sucked complete monkey in the playoffs. being overseduced by that doesn't seem like a bad thing to me.

OEL, when elevated in the lineup and asked to do too much, was such a disaster in Vancouver that they bought him out in one of the league's most expensive buyouts ever.

He succeeded in Florida while playing very limited bottom pair minutes. He's just not going to be afforded the same insulation here, especially now that we know what that blueline looks like.

He was moved onto the quaterback of PP1 during the cup final, and in that time the PP gave up more goals (shorties) than they scored.

I'm all for trying to fix your powerplay quarterback - this isn't the way to do it.

If he's our day to day number 4 but amplifies the PP - at his hit - we're golden.

This is precisely the line of thinking that has now cost the Vancouver Canucks $18.5M in dead cap space over the next 5 years.

Simply put - he's not a top 4 guy.

 

[Idiot Stick]

OEL played surprisingly good for us, maybe could count the times he messed up on my hand the entire season, gonna miss him.

He started off on the top pair for us with our injuries to start last year and he racked up goals and points quick, but came to a grinding halt once put back onto the 3rd pair when ekblad and montour came back.

He was on our PP1 until montour came back and we all wanted him back on there and it took until game 6* of the SCF for that to happen. He was a good qb on both PP1 and PP2. Guy has a nice shot too

 

[Roo]

This is a great signing, guys. Not sure why there is any reason to complain.

OEL played surprisingly good for us, maybe could count the times he messed up on my hand the entire season, gonna miss him.

He started off on the top pair for us with our injuries to start last year and he racked up goals and points quick, but came to a grinding halt once put back onto the 3rd pair when ekblad and montour came back.

He was on our PP1 until montour came back and we all wanted him back on there and it took until game 7 of the SCF for that to happen. He was a good qb on both PP1 and PP2. Guy has a nice shot too

Thank you for the first hand account. Definitely helps given most here are looking at his stats and old scouting reports online to base their judgement.

 

[ITM]

OEL, when elevated in the lineup and asked to do too much, was such a disaster in Vancouver that they bought him out in one of the league's most expensive buyouts ever.

He succeeded in Florida while playing very limited bottom pair minutes. He's just not going to be afforded the same insulation here, especially now that we know what that blueline looks like.

He was moved onto the quaterback of PP1 during the cup final, and in that time the PP gave up more goals (shorties) than they scored.

I'm all for trying to fix your powerplay quarterback - this isn't the way to do it.


This is precisely the line of thinking that has now cost the Vancouver Canucks $18.5M in dead cap space over the next 5 years.

Simply put - he's not a top 4 guy.

Post #256 from a Panthers fan suggests otherwise.

We'll see.

 

[Fogelhund]

4 years @ $3.5M for a 3rd pairing D is a tough sell.

This is going to be potentially very bad as early as year one. Best case, he gives PP1 a bit of a boost and brings some experience but that term/AAV is more of a gamble than I'd be comfortable with as a GM.

I agree it's a lot... and yet Edmundson got paid $3.85, Boosh $3.25, Brodie $3.75, Zadorov who is a 4/5 $5 mil, Ian Cole $3.1 It's kind of where the market in UFA's went this year... When you look at who has signed for less... I'm not sure there is a name there I'd rather have, even if I'm not a fan of the contract.

2024 NHL Free Agents

Tracking the status and signings of all NHL free agents.

www.spotrac.com

 

[Tak7]

Post #256 from a Panthers fan suggests otherwise.

We'll see.

He averaged 15 minutes a night in the playoffs - those are bottom pairing minutes.

 

[Idiot Stick]

He was moved onto the quaterback of PP1 during the cup final, and in that time the PP gave up more goals (shorties) than they scored.

I'm all for trying to fix your powerplay quarterback - this isn't the way to do it.

fwiw, i think all of our shorties in the playoffs were from the PP1 in which Montour was on it. OEL was only moved to PP1 in game 6 after we gave up back to back SHGs to start games 4&5 and they didnt allow a SHG since, they didnt score neither but oilers PK was elite, and our PP did look better. Game 4 Montour slid into bob allowing the SHG and i think hurting bob.

I dont think hell be the savior of the powerplay, but in our case he was solid

He did play 3rd line minutes all playoffs, but him and Kulikov were absolutely solid all playoffs. He did play first pairing with Forsling until early december when montour came back. In that stretch he got like 7 goals with a few on the PP, for a while it seemed like he was the only one who could score on that abysmal setup we had. He actually shot the puck instead of passing it 40 times over and over.

 

[TopG]

He averaged 15 minutes a night in the playoffs - those are bottom pairing minutes.

Thats bottom pair on a Stanley Cup winner. He's easily top 4 here

 

[Tak7]

Thats bottom pair on a Stanley Cup winner. He's easily top 4 here

Which is the very issue I'm trying to highlight - he's not a top 4 Dman.

Vancouver are paying him HUGE money until 2030 NOT to play for them, because they tried the whole top 4 thing with him and it went as predictably as one would have expected.

fwiw, i think all of our shorties in the playoffs were from the PP1 in which Montour was on it. OEL was only moved to PP1 in game 6 after we gave up back to back SHGs to start games 4&5 and they didnt allow a SHG since, they didnt score neither but oilers PK was elite, and our PP did look better. Game 4 Montour slid into bob allowing the SHG and i think hurting bob.

I dont think hell be the savior of the powerplay, but in our case he was solid

He did play 3rd line minutes all playoffs, but him and Kulikov were absolutely solid all playoffs. He did play first pairing with Forsling until early december when montour came back. In that stretch he got like 7 goals with a few on the PP, for a while it seemed like he was the only one who could score on that abysmal setup we had. He actually shot the puck instead of passing it 40 times over and over.

Playoffs is really where the critical evaluation will occur.

He had a very steady experienced partner in Kulikov, had his minutes managed properly, and played in a strong defensive system where the forwards (wingers in particular) provided so much help along the walls which made the Dman's job so easy - all 3 of those things aren't available here in Toronto.

It's a brutal contract.

 

[Folignos Helmet]

On its own his deal is ok.

If you take his and Lilys money and say go get Skjei or Roy. I would rather have that one player than those two but doesn’t sound like they wanted to come north of the border.

 

[Welsh Maple Leaf]

There's risk for sure but OEL will likely get sheltered minutes with Liljegren. McCabe and Tanev will be the shutdown defenders on pair 1 and 2. Our D is really built around Rielly, McCabe, Tanev. I view OEL-Liljegren as the 3rd pair.

3.5m to get sheltered minutes.

Even worse.

 

[HarryLime]

this guy was in the all hf-darling 1st team from like 2012-2018

 

[Tie Domi Esquire]

this guy was in the all hf-darling 1st team from like 2012-2018

Sounds like a jersey seller

 

[NJG]

Which is the very issue I'm trying to highlight - he's not a top 4 Dman.

Vancouver are paying him HUGE money until 2030 NOT to play for them, because they tried the whole top 4 thing with him and it went as predictably as one would have expected.

You do realize that could also be because of Vancouvers system at the time, style of play etc. You don't know how they we're using him, or if they were letting him pinch more often to try to be more offensive etc. or maybe the rest of their defense wasn't that great either? It all comes down to the system and how the coach wants them to play.

 

[4thline]

OEL is a really interesting case.

His 1st year in Vancouver was actually solid, averaged more than 22min a night, matchup usage, and largely broke even.

22-23... was an absolute trainwreck. Came into camp behind the eightball from a broken foot at the WHC's- cleared to play but nowhere near 100%. Got shelled, looked bad, got bought out

23-24- the narrative is that he did ok in a purely sheltered role, but it's just that- a narrative. His matchup difficulty averaged out to neutral- that of a mid pair defenseman. He averaged more than 18 minutes a night. 24 games over 20 minutes- several of those over 23, getting up into the 26 mark.

Yes, he played ~460 5v5 minutes with Kulikov, on what was an excellent bottom pairing. But he also spent more ~380 minutes with Forsling, and that pair won their minutes. 109 minutes with Montour, that pair won their minutes.

I'm under no illusion that we're going to see a return to Phoenix form- but we're also not looking at some guy that needs to be uber sheltered on third pair to be tolerable.

 

[DitchMarner]

4 years @ $3.5M for a 3rd pairing D is a tough sell.

This is going to be potentially very bad as early as year one. Best case, he gives PP1 a bit of a boost and brings some experience but that term/AAV is more of a gamble than I'd be comfortable with as a GM.

I get where you're coming from, but BOS is paying Zadorov $5 mil per and he's basically a bottom-pairing guy as well.

Teams spent a lot of money on July 1st this year. Teams got away from that for a little while and then this happens.

 

[Tak7]

You do realize that could also be because of Vancouvers system at the time, style of play etc. You don't know how they we're using him, or if they were letting him pinch more often to try to be more offensive etc. or maybe the rest of their defense wasn't that great either? It all comes down to the system and how the coach wants them to play.

If you think it's a good signing, that's fine.

Considering he was their backup signing and not their free agency plan A (Matt Roy), I question just how much the Leafs actually loved the idea and whether they more than likely got seduced by this need to fix the powerplay rather than looking at the larger body of work.

I personally think it's an awful signing, that is going to end up being a disaster for the team.

With time, we will see how it plays out.

 

[NJG]

If you think it's a good signing, that's fine.

Considering he was their backup signing and not their free agency plan A (Matt Roy), I question just how much the Leafs actually loved the idea and whether they more than likely got seduced by this need to fix the powerplay rather than looking at the larger body of work.

I personally think it's an awful signing, that is going to end up being a disaster for the team.

With time, we will see how it plays out.

You also know players can learn and change their game during their careers and what works and what doesn't and change their game or play more defensively / offensively / pinch less etc. Which I think he has and why I think that helped him bounce back and be good enough to play on a team that just won the cup... So he was good enough to play for the stanley cup champions but not good enough to play for us? lol

And you also don't know if he was the backup and if the target was Roy.... you're just making things up now, it was reported long before Roy wanted to stay in the US market.

 

[ITM]

He averaged 15 minutes a night in the playoffs - those are bottom pairing minutes.

Thats bottom pair on a Stanley Cup winner. He's easily top 4 here

 

[Tak7]

And you also don't know if he was the backup and if the target was Roy.... you're just making things up now, it was reported long before Roy wanted to stay in the US market.

We sure do - multiple reports said the Leafs were keen on Roy, and Mirtle said the Leafs were very, very close to getting it done. Pivoted to OEL after Roy signed with the Capitals, suggesting they were in it until the end.

 

[4thline]

He succeeded in Florida while playing very limited bottom pair minutes. He's just not going to be afforded the same insulation here, especially now that we know what that blueline looks like.

This is objectively false- he literally spent more 5v5 minutes with one of Forsling/Montour than he did Kulikov through the regular season. Half the season spent top or mid pairing on a 110 point team, and his overall (overall, not just bottom pair) results were great.

Yes the Panthers had the luxury of playing him mostly bottom pair in the playoffs- their big guns didn't get hurt. But his results higher in their lineup suggest that they would have been fine playing him higher if need be.